The prior art contains numerous references in the fields of shipping containers and assemblies for stacking cookware including U.S. Pat. No. 5,251,753 to Pigott, U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,113 to Schuster, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,993,553 and 4,936,457 to Kicherer, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,098,400 to Brown and U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,950 to Wylenzek.
The Pigott patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,251,753, discloses a unit for shipping and displaying a number of vertically stacked products separated by horizontal dividing trays. These trays further support upright dividers which also maintain separation between the product containers. For enhanced stability, each tray is provided with an individual corner support member which extends between an adjacent pair of vertically separated trays. All such trays are stacked upon an industry-standard pallet and secured therein by four corner posts.
The Schuster patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,113, discloses a uniquely designed container carrier having overlapping top panel flaps to reinforce the handle support area and a separating sheet which is displaced between layers of stacked containers which prevents direct contact between them. The top panel flaps include multiple score lines which serve to relieve stress on the carrier as it is lifted and transported.
The Kicherer patents, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,993,553 and 4,936,457, disclose stacking arrangements for electric hot plates which simply employ a pallet and multiple pallet plates. All such pallet plates have an array of receptacles, or shelves, in which the electric hot plates may be received. The underside of these receptacles are so shaped so as to fit neatly within the top side of an electric hot plate located immediately underneath.
The Brown patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,098,400, discloses a packaging system which includes a conventional pallet structure and a plurality of horizontal trays. These trays are substantially planar and have receptacles which are formed on opposite sides of the trays. Parts are intended to be layered between the plurality of these trays and the receptacles are designed so that the top and bottom of vertically adjacent parts are separated from one another, yet interlocked by the trays.
The Wylenzek patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,950, discloses a particular shipping container having a metal pallet base and four square metal corner posts extending vertically upward from the pallet base. An inverted box-shaped cover having vertical square recesses in each of its corners is then slidably received on the pallet corner posts to effect a four sided and covered shipping container. Means are also provided to lock the cover to the pallet base once the container is closed.
From the foregoing, it should be recognized that there is still a need for a shipping container, having particular application to fragile and/or awkwardly-shaped cookware pieces, which comprises the fewest number of packaging components, securely maintains each piece in spaced-apart relation to the others, facilitates both the rapid packaging and the rapid unpackaging of the pieces being shipped, and can be disassembled and stored in a minimal amount of space.